Written by

Anthony Kuehn

Detroit Free Press Special Writer

Anthony Kuehn is the editor of the Detroit Lions blog Lions Gab . His opinions do not necessarily reflect those of the Detroit Free Press nor its writers. Get in touch with Anthony at lionsgab@gmail.com or on Twitter @lionsgab.

The Detroit Lionsí defensive identity has been the defensive front since 2010 when the Lions traded for Corey Williams and Lawrence Jackson, signed Kyle Vanden Bosch and drafted Ndamukong Suh. The Lions only return two players from that group is Suh and Willie Young. The Lions experienced much turnover and a transition to a different style of player this past offseason.

The Lions return Suh and Nick Fairley at defensive tackle and they will be the key cogs in the defensive front. Fairley drew some media attention by announcing that he and Suh will be the best tackle tandem in the league. Suh agreed, but wisely said heíd prefer to show it on the field rather than talk about it in the summer.

Fairley is the more explosive of the two and may have been a better player than Suh in spurts last season. He is extremely quick and has excellent speed for a defensive lineman, let alone a tackle. Suh is explosive as well, but not in Fairleyís league; Suh relies more on raw power combined with his above average explosiveness. If the two of them can stay on the field all season and reach their potential, the benefit will trickle down to the rest of the defense.

Backing up Suh and Fairley will be C.J. Mosley, signed as a free agent back in the spring. He is a productive tackle who is a better run defender than pass rusher, but his role will be a rotational player on early downs.

The Lions have a few young unproven players at tackle in Ogemdi Nwagbuo and Jimmy Saddler-McQueen. I donít expect either player to make the roster out of training camp, which leaves the Lions a little thin at defensive tackle.

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The Lions may not carry a fourth traditional defensive tackle on the roster because of Jason Jones and Israel Idonije. Both players have experience playing defensive end on early downs and then moving inside to rush from tackle on passing downs. The Lions may decide that they only need three full time defensive tackles and rely on Jones and Idonije as rotational players.

The Lions could also look to bring back Corey Williams once training camp begins. Williams was productive and the Lions coaches really think highly of him. He struggled with a knee injury last year and hasnít really seen any action on the free agent market this offseason. I still believe the reason for that is the Lions intend to bring him back, but there is no need until they get to camp to allow him to recover rather than risk anything. Williams knows the scheme, has been in the league for nine seasons and doesnít need a full camp to get ready for the season.

The Lions have eight defensive ends on the roster right now and only two were on the roster last season. Young and Ronnell Lewis return from last yearís team, but despite being the two returning players they will appear to out of place in the locker room than everybody else. The Lions have relied on quick undersized defensive ends for the last few seasons and Lewis and Young fit that mold. The Lions made a very conscious effort to get bigger at defensive end and succeeded. The Lions only had one defensive end on the roster over 270 pounds last year; this season they have five with four expected to make the team.

Ziggy Ansah was the highest profile addition as a top five draft pick and one of the most unlikely stories in NFL history. At this time last season, most BYU fans didnít even know about Ansah. He will bring a lot of raw athleticism and potential, but he will be a work in progress and may not have a big impact as far as stats are concerned. He has a huge frame and long arms which will make it difficult for tackles to engage him coming off the edge. He needs a ton of work on his technique and will have to develop pass rush moves and counter moves to maximize his potential. Ansahís development in the preseason will be one of the more critical aspects for the defensive frontís prospects for 2013.

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Jones was an early addition in free agency and he also has a tall frame with extremely long arms. He is not an explosive player, but has good power and a relentless motor. His best performances have come when heís been lined up inside at tackle in obvious passing downs. The coaches initially said he would be the starter at left end and then move inside in sub packages, but that may have changed with the addition of Idonije.

Idonije was signed a few weeks ago to bolster the defensive front. Like Jones, he has a long frame and has played left end and rotational defensive tackle with a lot of success the last few years. Idonije had 7.5 sacks last season for the Bears and I believe he and Jones will now compete for the left end position. Idonije is a great locker room guy and comes from one of the better defensive fronts in the league, so his experience will be valuable as well as his physical skills.

Devin Taylor was another draft pick that fits the new mold the Lions are looking for. He stands a towering 6-foot-8 but only weighs 267 pounds. Taylor flashed a lot of potential in college but never really capitalized on it despite playing opposite of one of the best defensive ends in college. Jadeveon Clowney constantly demanded double teams, but Taylor only managed to generate three sacks in 2012. Taylor will most likely never be a great pass rusher, but he could develop into a well-balanced rotational end.

Young will be looked upon to back up Ansah as well as provide a speed rush from the outside on passing downs. Young looked like a late-round gem in 2011 but really never looked comfortable in 2012 and took a major step back. Young has a great first step and uses his leverage and power better than most players his size. He will have a lot to prove this season as he heads into a contract year.

Lewis is a very intriguing prospect because of his background in college and how the Lions may want to deploy him. Lewis was a hybrid defensive end and linebacker in college who rushed from multiple positions and logged nine sacks in his final two years at Oklahoma. Will the Lions continue to try him at defensive end or will they potentially use him as a rush linebacker in sub packages? Lewis is a solid special teamer, but I donít really see him transitioning to a full-time defensive end. He has a lot of work to do to get into the line rotation and may only have a future as a special teamer.

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Braylon Broughton and Spencer Nealy are both physically what the Lions are looking for as both are over 6-5 and 270 pounds, but I have a hard time seeing either landing a roster spot.

One other interesting player out there that could be in the Lionsí plans is John Abraham. He is a veteran pass rusher that was still very effective for Atlanta last year and he is waiting to sign with a team in training camp rather than having to go through the offseason workouts. If the Lions have concerns about the pass rush, they could turn to him for a proven pass rush threat.

Overall, the defensive line will be a lot more physical than they have been in the past. They are losing some speed at defensive end, but gaining size and power which will help against the run and can really help the pass rush as well.

J.J. Watt is a perfect example of how devastating a powerful pass rush can be. Watt isnít a 4.6 40-yard dash guy with an elite first step. Heís a powerful and relentless athlete with length that helps him get into the offensive linemanís frame and drive him into the pocket. It may not be as graceful as watching Julius Peppers use elite speed and quickness to blow by and get a sack, but itís just as effective.

The Lions added a great deal of length and power which could be a lethal combination with Suh and Fairley on the inside. Instead of the defensive ends trying to get outside of the tackles, they will be pushing the tackles into the pocket and shrinking the width of the pocket.

With Suh and Fairley getting push up the middle, the quarterback wonít have anywhere to go. In the past, the ends could get pushed outside and open huge passing or running lanes for the quarterback to get away from the inside rush. Think Andrew Luckís game-winning touchdown against the Lions last year. The Lions will be less susceptible to that this season.

The flip side is if the ends canít get enough pressure quickly and drive the tackles backwards, the quarterback will be able to sidestep the inside rush or roll outside of the ends.

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So many people have criticized the Lionsí secondary and pass rush for allowing too many big plays, but what has really killed the Lionsí defense the last couple of years has been the running game. Teams have been able to successfully run the ball allowing them to limit the number of obvious passing situations they are in. The Lions were actually pretty solid in obvious passing situations last season, they just rarely forced teams into them. A pass rusher canít sell out and go after the quarterback on third-and-5 when there is a threat of a running play, but if itís third-and-8 or-9, they can. The versatility of Jones and Idonije to move around the line can cause a lot of matchup issues for the offense as well.

Iíve mentioned previously Iím concerned about the wholesale changes to the defensive line and the shift in philosophy. Like so many areas of the 2013 Lions, there is potential for major improvements over last year, but like any high upside gamble, the odds of hitting arenít always that great.